Fire met water, turning instantly into a cloud of scalding steam.
Unlike the regular Hidden Mist Jutsu, this wasn't just cover—it was superheated vapor. It swallowed Kushimaru Kuriarare whole.
His skin sizzled, burning. His eyes, the most vulnerable parts, stung with intense pain, forcing him to squeeze them shut.
But the heat didn't last long, and thanks to his Mind's Eye of the Kagura, Night knew Kushimaru wasn't out of the fight yet.
Even worse, the commotion had attracted attention from the core battlefield. Night sensed several Mist ninjas closing in fast.
While the mist still lingered but the heat had dropped, Night made his move. He flickered forward, appearing behind Kushimaru like a ghost, slashing down with his kunai.
Kushimaru was still reeling, but his battle instincts were sharp. He thrust Nuibari backward blindly, hoping to trade blows and force the attacker to retreat.
SHUNK—SHUNK—
The sound of blades piercing flesh was sickeningly clear. Kushimaru's eyes snapped open in disbelief. He stared at the boy behind him, shocked that his desperate counter-attack had worked... but the boy hadn't dodged.
Nuibari had skewered Night straight through the heart.
But Night didn't stop. He let the long needle-sword slide completely through his chest, closing the distance until his own kunai slammed into Kushimaru's throat, tearing it open. Blood sprayed like a fountain.
Kushimaru let go of his sword, clutching his neck with both hands as if trying to hold his life in.
Night's face twisted in pain, but his enhanced Uzumaki vitality kept him standing. He swayed but didn't fall. Under his breath, he whispered:
"Redeem 'Rapid Body Repair'."
"Pawn."
[System: 500 Points Deducted.]
The gaping hole in Night's chest began to knit together at visible speed. Soon, only the bloodstains on his clothes remained as proof of the fatal wound.
[Scan Complete. Pawnable Items Discovered:]
[Ding! Dying Elite Jonin ... Valuation: 50]
[Ding! Unrecorded Ninjutsu (Extractable) ... Valuation: 200]
[Ding! Special Ninja Tool 'Nuibari' (Needle Sword) ... Valuation: 200]
"Pawn it all."
A flash of light, and the enemy—along with his legendary sword—vanished.
Night did the math. He got stabbed in the heart and ended up losing 50 points on the exchange. His chest started aching again just thinking about it.
It was a huge gamble. He only dared to try it because Nuibari dealt piercing damage. If it had been the Executioner's Blade, he would have been chopped in half.
Sensing the enemy reinforcements only a few kilometers away, Night flashed over to Captain Ito.
He felt nothing but respect for this Jonin who refused to abandon his students even at the cost of his life.
After killing the first Mist ninja and learning the Water Clone Jutsu, Night had left a clone in the hut while his real body went scavenging. If Ito hadn't come back for them as promised, Night would have left the two traitors to die without a second thought. Survival was priority number one.
Even that suicidal trade with Kushimaru was a split-second improvisation.
"Captain Ito." Night looked at the man, who was drifting into a coma from blood loss.
Hearing his voice, Ito struggled to open his eyes. His gaze was complicated—relief mixed with shock.
With the last of his strength, he pointed to his chest.
"Night... take the scroll... inside my vest... Intel on the Land of Whirlpools... get it back to Konoha..."
"I really wanted... to see the village... one last time."
His voice faded into silence.
Night quietly retrieved the scroll and then sealed Ito's body into a storage scroll he found.
"Take us with you! Help us!"
Ken Shimizu's begging broke the somber silence.
The two Genin were covered in cuts. They could still move, but they were too weak to escape on their own.
Night's eyes went cold.
"Almost forgot about you two."
"Trash not even worth pawning. Go rot in hell."
"Fire Style: Flame Bullet."
Before they could react, flames engulfed them, turning them into charred corpses in seconds.
Job done. Night pushed his sensory range to the max, turned, and sprinted toward the Land of Fire without looking back.
---
Konoha. The Hokage's Office.
The office was filled with smoke. Hiruzen Sarutobi, currently in his prime, frowned at the battle reports on his desk.
Konoha had just forced Hanzo of the Salamander to back down, but was now simultaneously fighting the Stone and Sand villages. It was a brutal three-way gridlock.
Although Konoha had plenty of talent—the Sannin and the White Fang were all Kage-level powerhouses—war was about logistics and reserves as much as fighting strength. The pressure on the village was immense.
As Hiruzen was issuing orders, an ANBU appeared and bowed.
"Report. One member of Squad Ito has returned from the recon mission in the Land of Whirlpools."
"Who?"
"Night Namikaze."
Hiruzen paused mid-sentence, trying to recall the name. He then ordered the ANBU to bring him in.
Night looked like he'd been through a grinder. He hadn't stopped since leaving the battlefield, bypassing the border outpost to report directly to the village.
The doors to the Hokage's office opened, and Night walked in.
The two locked eyes.
Night delivered the line he had rehearsed on the way back:
"Squad Ito, Night Namikaze, reporting. Infiltration mission complete."
"Infiltration mission?"
Hiruzen caught the subtle emphasis. Night looked exhausted, but he stressed the word infiltration.
"Where is the rest of your squad?"
"KIA. I'm the sole survivor."
Night then explained that the squad had successfully infiltrated Uzushiogakure and, per their orders, retrieved a Sealing Jutsu scroll.
He placed two scrolls on the desk: the secret scroll from Ito's vest and the storage scroll containing Ito's body. Both were stained with dried blood.
Seeing the bloodied scrolls, Hiruzen fell silent for a moment.
"Repeat the orders you received."
"We were ordered to infiltrate the Whirlpool Village, retrieve Sealing Jutsu scrolls, and recon the Mist invasion force."
"Go get some rest. You've gone above and beyond. Konoha does not let its heroes bleed in vain."
"Sir."
Night didn't say another word. During his escape, he had realized the orders were fishy. That was why he rushed straight to the Hokage—to cover his bases before anyone could spin the narrative.